One thousand meters above the sea level, on the slopes of the Sibillini mountains, twenty years ago a young academic researcher dreamt of becoming a chef and bringing high cuisine up here. Years of studying the cuisine bibles, of constant commitment, next to his mother, in the kitchen of the family restaurant, years of halts and great creative leaps later later, this dream is finally taking shape: his name is Enrico Mazzaroni, Il Tiglio is his restaurant, an elegant refuge made in stone, surrounded by the silence of a small hamlet in Montemonaco.
Preparing a dish: the menu at Il Tiglio is divided into six tastings with three starters, two first courses and one main course
His cuisine has a sole, great inspiration: love. The love of this chef for his place of birth – which has led him to abandon his academic career in scholarly Bologna to return to the Marche region – the love for his family and most of all the love for his work: «I realise that while I’m rolling out the pasta for our
tortelli, I get lost in the love for these gestures and this is the greatest luck for a chef. It’s unthinkable to start a profession as difficult as that in the kitchen without love; you cannot spend years perfecting the cooking of a suckling pig or waiting for an idea that never gets as clear as you would it like to, unless you love your work totally. My cuisine makes my life truly happy».
A self trained chef, with a scientific approach (the heritage of his three degrees and of his teaching post in law),
Enrico has his roots deep in the inspiration given by the mountain tradition of the Marche, leading to dishes that are fully original, built on a complex and not always immediate balance of flavours. Let’s speak, for instance, of his
Italian style liver, which starting from the three traditional elements (liver, onion and
marsala), is transformed into a pleasant pâté made precious with small
biscotti and powdered parsley, Sibillini onion burnt in soy sauce and a tamarind ice-cream to give balance to the palate.
Enrico Mazzaroni’s suckling pig
«Food needs to strike different inclinations in a different way, bestowing ephemeral unrepeatable emotions... this is why I feel like an artisan who, every day, measures the taste of his clients trying to make them express their delight, something that fills every chef with joy».
At
Il Tiglio everyone can choose to take his flavourful journey, from the delicious
Parmesan sphere with vegan carrot liquid heart, to the
Pigeon with foie gras and sour cherries, to the lovely
Chocolate cake, the result of years of experiments; all this while cuddled by a careful service (coordinated by smiling
Gian Luigi Silvestri) and reassured by a recession-friendly tasting menu.
Il Tiglio
Isola di San Biagio
Montemonaco (AP)
+39.0736.856441
ristorante@iltiglioagriturismo.it
From October 1st to May 31st closed on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
From June 1st to September 30th open daily
Tasting menus: 33, 35, 45 euros
Average à la carte prices: starters 12 first courses 15 main course 18 euros
